Henryk Józef Muszyński (born 20 March 1933 in

Kościerzyna Kościerzyna ( Kashubian and Pomeranian: ''Kòscérzëna''; formerly german: Berent, ) is a town in Kashubia in Gdańsk Pomerania region, northern Poland, with some 24,000 inhabitants. It has been the capital of Kościerzyna County in Pomerania ...

Kashubia pl, Kaszuby , native_name_lang = csb, de, csb , settlement_type = Historical region , anthem = Zemia Rodnô , image_map = Kashubians in Poland.png , image_flag ...

) is the Primate Emeritus of Poland and former archbishop of Gniezno,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

, having been appointed by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

when the Polish hierarchy was reorganized in March 1992. He had previously been

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Włocławek Włocławek (Polish pronunciation: ; german: Leslau) is a city located in central Poland along the Vistula (Wisła) River and is bordered by the Gostynin-Włocławek Landscape Park. As of December 2021, the population of the city is 106,928. Loc ...

since 1987.

Life

He is known for his

Biblical studies Biblical studies is the academic application of a set of diverse disciplines to the study of the Bible (the Old Testament and New Testament).''Introduction to Biblical Studies, Second Edition'' by Steve Moyise (Oct 27, 2004) pages 11–12 Fo ...

, especially concerning the Qumran manuscripts. He has been described as "an advocate of open and tolerant Catholicism". Together with Danuta Hubner and Tadeusz Pieronek, Muszyński coauthored a reflection on the integration of Polish Christianity into the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

. This reflection persuaded many Polish rectors to become proponents of

Poland's accession to the European Union The largest expansion of the European Union (EU), in terms of territory, number of states, and population took place on 1 May 2004. The simultaneous accessions concerned the following countries (sometimes referred to as the "A10" countries): C ...

in 2004.

Historically, the

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Gniezno Gniezno (; german: Gnesen; la, Gnesna) is a city in central-western Poland, about east of Poznań. Its population in 2021 was 66,769, making it the sixth-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. One of the Piast dynasty's chief cities, ...

served simultaneously as the

Primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians (monkeys and apes, the latter including huma ...

. But when the reorganization of the Polish Church's ecclesiastical structure severed the See from

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, an exception was made to continue the long-standing tradition until the retirement of the

Archbishop of Warsaw The following is a list of the bishops and archbishops of Warsaw. On 30 June 1818, the see was elevated to the rank of an archdiocese. Also included are the auxiliary bishops. Bishops of Warsaw: * Józef Miaskowski, 1798–1804 *, Apostolic A ...

, who had previously been Archbishop of both cities. On 1 November 2006 Pope

Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

sent a letter to

Józef Glemp Józef Glemp (18 December 192923 January 2013) was a Polish cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of Warsaw from 1981 to 2006, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1983. Biography Early life and ordination Józef Glemp was ...

confirming that Cardinal Glemp would be the Primate of Poland until 18 December 2009, his 80th birthday. According to controversial records saved in

Instytut Pamięci Narodowej The Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation ( pl, Instytut Pamięci Narodowej – Komisja Ścigania Zbrodni przeciwko Narodowi Polskiemu, abbreviated IPN) is a Polish state resea ...

, since 1985 to 1989 Henryk Muszyński was registered as secret collaborator of communist

Służba Bezpieczeństwa The Ministry of Public Security ( pl, Ministerstwo Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego), commonly known as UB or later SB, was the secret police, intelligence and counter-espionage agency operating in the Polish People's Republic. From 1945 to 1954 it w ...

, however he did not agree to this and not even know about that fact, and that his superiors where informed about all talks with communist authorities. Muszyński expressed regret that he could not refuse such talks. Archbishop Muszynski has sought to constantly improve relations with

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

s and

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

. In 1999, he received the

Buber-Rosenzweig-Medal The Buber-Rosenzweig-Medaille is an annual prize awarded since 1968 by the Deutscher Koordinierungsrat der Gesellschaften für Christlich-Jüdische Zusammenarbeit (DKR; German Coordinating Council of Societies for Christian-Jewish Cooperation) to in ...

for his contributions to the to Christian–Jewish understanding. He was praised by

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

for doing this in 2005.

References

External links

Virtual tour Gniezno Cathedral List of Primates of Poland
{{DEFAULTSORT:Muszynski, Henryk 1933 births Living people Archbishops of Gniezno Bishops of Kujawy and Włocławek Kashubians Kashubian clergy People from Kościerzyna Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany

Life

See also

References

External links